On Saturday (Mar. 28), the Ministry of Health (MOH) reported 70 new cases of Covid-19.

The total number of Covid-19 cases in Singapore is now 802.

Isolated and cared for at private hospitals and resort

According to MOH, a total of 182 cases in Singapore are isolated and cared for at private hospitals and D’Resort NTUC, the Community Isolation Facility.

The private hospitals include Concord International Hospital, Mount Elizabeth Hospital, and Gleneagles Hospital.

Although the cases placed in these premises still test positive for Covid-19, MOH stated that they are clinically well.

Since Mar. 24, some patients have already been moved to D'Resort NTUC.

The patients will continue to be isolated at the facility, which has a capacity of about 500 persons.

They will also receive medical care there.

MOH said that the facility is modelled after existing Government Quarantine Facilities, though the staff there would observe “a higher baseline level of infection control”.

The cost of being isolated in the Community Isolation Facility would be covered by the government.

This tallies with Minister for Health Gan Kim Yong's statements in parliament on Wednesday, March 25.

In his speech, Gan said Singapore will no longer be taking a conservative approach to the epidemic, due to the significant number of imported cases from returning residents and visitors, which may lead to more localised transmissions.

The plan was for MOH to progressively move Covid-19 patients experiencing milder symptoms out of public hospitals and into private hospitals and other care facilities, in order to preserve capacity in Singapore’s healthcare system.

Patients with mild symptoms will after initial hospitalisation and assessment be shifted to a mix of private hospitals and converted Government Quarantine Facilities (GQFs), such as D’Resort in Pasir Ris, in order to focus Singapore’s critical hospital resources on the seriously ill.

This is in anticipation of potential further local clusters emerging, and also in view of the fact that 80 per cent of Covid-19 cases were mild to moderate, and therefore only require limited medical care.